A growing gift...

A growing gift....

A friend sent me a planter this last year.  It contained a prayer plant, an African violet and pony tail bulb. It has grown and flourished.  And every time I look at it, I am reminded of her, her family and the ministry in which she is involved. 

So yesterday, as I watered it, they were again brought to mind more forcefully..so prayed again.  they are battling against cancer which has invaded her husband's body...

As I looked again at the plant, I quickly texted her reminding us both that like this prayer plant  which has grown, so have the prayers for the family.

The plant needs light, water, warmth, care and nourishment and is totally dependent on me....just as prayer does..we take our requests to Jesus, the Light of the World....who gives us living water...care and nourishment through His Word...and we grow deeper in our souls, relying on our "Caregiver"...for the care we need...

Thank YOU for prayer, Your caregiving...pictures that with which You enlighten our minds...bringing us back to You....

John 8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 

John 4:10-11, 13-14 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 

John 7:38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 

2 Thessalonians 1:3, 12 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 

We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Author....finisher...

Author....

Author....the writer of a book, article...creator..the one who puts down the words....

Listening to a pastor in Tennessee this past week with part of my family was fun...sitting there with two of their four children in church was a blessing ....as it is going to church with any of my children and grandchildren...they are all listening and working out the salvation that has been freely given to them...that is worth more that all the wealth in the the world...to see God working and them responding  to His Word...okay, I got sidelined....

The pastor was expounding on Hebrews, but I got stuck on the words, "Author and Finisher"....

It made me think of the verse in...

Philippians 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. 

 

What a promise....God is writing or has written out our lives..He knows the story...and He finishes it...He is perfecting it...Jesus, the creator, has gone before us, blazing the trail ...in completeness...and we will be be complete at some point...He won't leave us unfinished, unusable, purposeless,....

That is such a promise...a finished completed work...

Thank YOU for Your Work in our lives...each thing that comes into our path is a part of the finishing work You use to complete us.... 

Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. King James

Hebrews 12:2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. NIV

Hebrews 12:2 looking away from all that will distract us and focusing our eyes on Jesus, who is the Author and Perfecter of faith (the first incentive for our belief and the One who brings our faith to maturity), who for the joy of accomplishing the goal set before Him endured the cross, disregarding the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God revealing His deity, His authority, and the completion of His work. Amplified 

Hebrews 12:2 Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. The Message

Jars of jelly....

Jars of jelly....

The other day I was cleaning out a jar of jelly, homemade Montana huckleberry, and it brought to mind hundreds of of jars of jelly over my life time...

Both of my grandmothers made jelly with whatever fruits were available where they lived..fig, apple, plums, blackberry, ....those smells going to their homes during my childhood still being wonderful childhood memories  of days gone by...warm fresh jelly on a biscuit or a piece of fresh bread...

One grandmother made a dozen jars for each son or grandson every Christmas, a much anticipated gift...

Then my mother made jellies and jams as well with whatever was on hand wherever we lived..to be slathered on school lunch sandwiches ....hummmm good..

Then over the years I have made jams and jellies of various kinds to be consumed my family as well or to be given away as gifts...

Now my some of my children have taken up the job as well....trying new recipes as well as tried and true ones...

Now, We can go to the grocery stores or import shops and buy jellies and jams from all the world, but there is nothing quite like that homemade gift or creation by our own hands...

It was another reminder of God's Word.  We are to hand it down generation after generation..nurturing and mentoring those who are coming after us.

Relishing it's sweet savor, using it in daily life, gifting it to those around us...passing it on...so that we use it all the time...so that it permeates our being...with sweetness to our souls...

We can take it with us to foreign nations, give it away, add it to our daily diet, enjoy it...passing on the recipes of life we have gleamed from it pages...we can remember who gave it to us and thank them for it...

All from simple taste of homemade Jelly, a reminder to enjoy the sweetness of the Word...

Thank YOU so much for loving us from generation to generation....making a your Word just as sweet to our souls as it was generations ago...

Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments. 

Proverbs 16:24 Gracious words are a honeycomb,sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. 

Psalm 119:103 How sweet are your words to my taste,sweeter than honey to my mouth! 

Psalm 45:17 I will perpetuate your memory through all generations; therefore the nations will praise you for ever and ever. 

Psalm 145:4 One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. 

Refusing to worry....?

Refusing to worry....?

So why am I up so early again????? Worry, again....2am, 3 am, 4 am....

Going back through my blogs, I wrote about this problem several times...and here i am again...fretting again...not letting God take the burden, worrying about the future, anxious about relationships, worry....fret....anxiousness....

And what do I open??? This devotional...how God must chuckle at my fuming, my lack of faith ...my unbelief.  How he must want to say again and again, "my child, my child....let me have it...I will give you strength, I will give you wisdom,,,,,just for the asking..."...

And He is saying that in the quiet on my restless heart and mind ....Help me listen....

Thank YOU for your patience ..... 

Jesus calls-----September 22
Trust Me and refuse to worry, for I am your Strength and Song.You are feeling wobbly this morning, looking at difficult times looming ahead, measuring them against your own strength. However, they are not today’s tasks—or even tomorrow’s. So leave them in the future and come home to the present, where you will find Me waiting for you. Since I am your Strength, I can empower you to handle each task as it comes. Because I am your Song, I can give you Joy as you work alongside Me.
Keep bringing your mind back to the present moment. Among all My creatures, only humans can anticipate future events. This ability is a blessing, but it becomes a curse whenever it is misused. If you use your magnificent mind to worry about tomorrow, you cloak yourself in dark unbelief. However, when the hope of heaven fills your thoughts, the Light of My Presence envelops you. Though heaven is future, it is also present tense. As you walk in the Light with Me, you have one foot on earth and one foot in heaven.
The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
—Exodus 15:2
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
—2 Corinthians 10:5
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
—Hebrews 10:23

Blogs....

Blogs...

I recently finished 797 blogs. I can't believe I was reminded of that much to say or share...from gratitude to grieving...

But, I have been impressed that they need to be organized and put into categories...grief, general, and family...as that seems to be the main subjects...then maybe some subcategories...just maybe...with more pictures added...

I don't know what that is setting myself up for, just obeying that nudge...everyday day I am reminded of family stories, Bible lessons, and now grieving lessons again as griefshare has started this fall...being vulnerable and open to what God brings to mind...

It gets my words out when there is no one to talk to, get lessons for each day ready to think through, brings to mind people to pray for, " ponderings"of life events, "considerings" of so much....sharing of heart felt messages...it opens my heart to messages from my Lord...the Truth giver...it makes me think about subjects I may have not thought about before...read scripture with new light...keeps my mind active and hopefully my heart more receptive ....

We are told to ponder, consider God's Word, to delve into it, to be transformed by it...to share it...and be doers of it...

Thank YOU for this pathway that You have given me...I don't know how long it will be, what sights I will see, what lessons I will learn, but it has been a new adventure I never expected or dreamed about...thank You for sharing Your Word in my life...always willing that we learn more and more of You...

Psalm 8:3-4 When I consider your heavens,the work of your fingers,the moon and the stars,which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? 

Psalm 77:12-14 I will consider all your worksand meditate on all your mighty deeds.” Your ways, God, are holy.What god is as great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles;you display your power among the peoples. 

Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 

Regrets....

Regrets.....

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/americans-over-65-shared-greatest-120000285.html

I found this article intriguing..."what do you regret when you look back on your life?"

It wasn't what the author thought it would be....

Worrying over things that didn't happen...wasted time worrying...

Matthew 6:25-34 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. 

Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. 

Luke 12:11-12 “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 

for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.” 

Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 

In many instances I equate fear with worry...I worry because I am fearful of what "might " happen...then I worry and stew over the small to the largest of things that may or may not happen...watching the news or the stock market reports adds stress and worry to my life....and there is really nothing I can do except pray for peace in my soul and hand it over to God who has it under His control anyway...

Loss of restorative sleep due to worry is unhealthy as well...I really need to work on that..."hand it over" I hear in the darkness of night and thought..."I will take your burdens"...

Then the stress of that worry ...decreases instead of increases the days ....by adding stress related physical problems...

I know I am not alone in this dialogue...of worry and fear...or God wouldn't have addressed it...or the author of the article wouldn't have researched it and written about it...I hope for their sake they learned something for their own lives to put into practice .....

Thank YOU that you take our worries when we are ready to relinquish them...You take our fears, real or unreal, and replace them with Your love...help me to open my hands to you...

 

Mending....

Mending.....

Last winter we had some very high winds which were constant for a long period of time. During that time my wooden board fence broke at a weak place. I called the original  builder to have it repaired and he told me that he would get to it "sometime", never came as he has been so busy building new fences...I can commiserate with him as I don't like to mend either.  It is much more fulfilling to build new rather than try to fix sake thing that is broken or needs rebuilt or mended...

When my children were growing up, my mending pile of clothes grew and grew waiting until they outgrew them, so that I didn't have to mend...while I totally enjoyed creating new garments even as the other mending pile sat idly by, waiting to be taken care....

My grandmother "darned" socks so that they would last longer...she didn't just go buy new ones when there was a hole in the toe..she patiently put a wooden darning tool in the sock, wove cotton threads back and forth to fill in the offending hole.  It might not have been the right color, but the hole was filled..and the sock ready for use again...a nightly chore while listening to the radio, there being no TV to watch...

Mending...it takes time, to go back and redo, to figure out how to make it work again, what pieces need repaired, to find the replacements...and it doesn't feel as creative as starting from scratch and making something new...

 

We talk about "mending fences" in relationships as well. Mending those hurts that can occur along life's paths..regaining trust, regaining love lost over brokenness, bad decisions, unforgiveness, misinformation, etc, etc...and it takes some serious work to mend relationships...it takes humbling ourselves, putting down our pride, forgetting the past, waiting, patience, changing old habits and so much more depending on the "offense"..

And prayer...and maybe even letting go...

Thank YOU that You came to mend our brokenness, to help us repair broken relationships....to make us new creations, usable in Your world...setting us on the path that you have for us...transforming us into Your image day by day...

Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. 

Ecclesiastes 3:7 a time to tear and a time to mend,a time to be silent and a time to speak, 

Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 

2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 

My fence finally got mended, sturdier than it was before, more concrete, a stronger main post...no more swaying in the wind, leaning, creaking or moaning from its brokenness...transformed into something better....just as God is working in my life...and anyone else's who desires mending....

believe....

I purchased this stone from a local store a couple of years ago.  With wind, snow, rain, ice, it has deteriorated  to this cracked stone which is slowly breaking  apart and will eventually have to be thrown away...the dove in the middle is barely discernible and the word, "believe" is fading as well..

Not a really good stone to show a strong belief..., man-made plaster from a mold...manmade.....

There are events and times in life that look like this stone ....cracked belefs...falling apart...deteriorating ....thrown away ....or wrong beliefs....when times are tough, or maybe times are great and flourishing....or not enough time for basics...

Many events can draw us away from our core values...and break up our believing...manmade decisions, circumstances, a multitude too many to even mention...

There comes a time when we have to decide what is our basic, bottom line beliefs...who is our foundation..in whom or in what do we believe...what foundation do we want to hold us up...
not a broken,  manmade plaster of Paris mold....
But, real, solid, firm foundation that does not fall apart with the forces of nature or world circumstances...
Who is our rock? Who is our core?

God has given us free will to choose ....but he desires that all would come to Him for their foundation...their rock..their cornerstone...He alone doesn't break , fall apart...

Thank YOU for your solidness, your firmness...Your care...


1 Samuel 2:2 “There is no one holy like the Lord;there is no one besides you;there is no Rock like our God.

Deuteronomy 32:4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect ,and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.

2 Samuel 22:3a   my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,my shield and the horn of my salvation.He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—....

Psalm 18:46 The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock!Exalted be God my Savior!

The color red....

The color red....

They say that the color red is a power color...that men are attracted to red over other colors...

"Red is the warmest of all colors. Red is the color most chosen by extroverts and one of the top picks of males. On the negative side red can mean temper or anger. In China, red is the color of prosperity and joy. Brides wear red and front doors are often painted red. Red is Tuesday's color. Red roses symbolize passionate love. Ruby rings should be worn on the left hand...." Yahoo, the meaning of red...

My husband always tried to get red trucks, he liked the color.  He never wore red, though..he tried to talk me into red cars, but I didn't  like them...so mine were softer, restful colors...I felt too flashy in red...too standoutish....I am not an extrovert by any stretch of the imagination...

I just thought it was interesting how many times the color red is mentioned in the Bible...

The red blood over the door frames so that the angel of death will pass by...

Passing through the Red Sea on dry ground, to safety....

Red dyed ram skins in the tabernacle...

A Scarlet cord to save a believing family in Jericho....

Sins of scarlet washed white as snow with belief ...

Wine to represent the red blood of Christ who gave his blood for my salvation...

Red blood saved...the passing through the Red Sea saved...red is a picture of the blood shed for sins, which can be forgiven by the blood of Christ....to make us as clean as snow...quite a contrast from blood red to pure white...from sins to sin free...forgiven...and saved...

Thank YOU for your pictures again and again of Your saving grace....

Exodus 12:7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. 

Exodus 14:13, 16, 29, 31 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.

 Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.

 But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. 

And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant. 

Exodus 25:5 ram skins dyed red and another type of durable leather; acacia wood; 

Joshua 2:18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. 

Isaiah 1:18-19 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”says the Lord.“Though your sins are like scarlet,they shall be as white as snow;though they are red as crimson,they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient,you will eat the good things of the land; 

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 

Second son....

Second son....

In 1986, we were chosen to have the opportunity to adopt our last child...a 18 month old little blond boy...

He had had a hard start in life, being born prematurely, life flighted to another city, and eventually put into foster care...

He had been available for adoption for several months, but for some reason was lost in the paper shuffle.  

They contacted our family and we said "yes"... There would be a twelve year difference in ages between our first son and our last...

We made the trip, were brought up to speed on his records, his health, his life to this point and then we went to the foster care home...we rang the bell and were met with this little blond haired boy with his arms outstretched, welcoming us.. Our hearts melted at the sight and knew that he was going to be our next child...with this gesture...he wanted hugged and a permanent home...

The foster parents had been taking care of several babies ready for adoption and preparing them for homes for their own...they lived under the flight pattern for the local airport and our  new little one was always pointing to the planes and saying, "plane, plane", his first words...he continued that word for a long time, always finding planes even when we couldn't...

We chose the name, "Matthew", meaning "gift of the Lord" because he had truly been a gift to us...which he has been throughout his life in our family...

He is the daredevil, riding motorcycles, Broncos, Bulls, ....he is the one who tested our limits...to the greatest, bringing us to our knees more than any of our four children...but, he loved babies, working with children at summer camps, a great soccer player and wrestler, a salesman through and through, loves story telling, a  big help to many who know him...and now is the father of four precious little ones with an amazing wife...

Thank YOU for Matthew...Your gift to our family...through the years....You prepared him just for us...

These are the verses that God gave me for this son...

Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 

Jeremiah 31:16-17 This is what the Lord says:“Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,”declares the Lord.“They will return from the land of the enemy. So there is hope for your descendants,”declares the Lord.“Your children will return to their own land.

Happy birthday!!!!

Earthly tent...

An earthly tent....

As I said yesterday, I was to attend a funeral of a friend...his earthly tent had given out and he went to live in his eternal home...

It had seemed that he went too early, younger than many, leaving behind family and friends who will miss him.  But, he went in God's time, called to walk those gold paved streets with my husband...and others ...I wonder if they look at those streets of gold and wonder why they strived and searched for gold here on earth when it it just pavement there...

It goes along with making wise the simple or other oxymorons that we may find in life...Gods thoughts are much more complex and infinite than ours...

An earthly tent...I liked Mr. Stedman's analogy of living in this tent....as well as the Word's...the structure of a tent is so temporal...manmade materials which can be heavy canvas or the lightweight nylon...waterproof or not, metal or wood struts and stays, small or large in area, quickly collaspible or semi permanent, windows or not, multitude of colors and shapes, inexpensive or very expensive ....replaceable ...and it wears out after much use...made for the side of Mt Everest or as a play tent in a toddler's room...so varying in use...just as we all are...

Thank YOU for this earthly tent..help me to take care of it, use it wisely, and to let it go when it's use is over...and for those tents around me...remembering that You take care of the Soul ....

Ecclesiastes 12:1-5 Remember your Creator In the days of your youth,before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say,“I find no pleasure in them”— before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark,and the clouds return after the rain; when the keepers of the house tremble,and the strong men stoop,when the grinders cease because they are few,and those looking through the windows grow dim; when the doors to the street are closed and the sound of grinding fades;when people rise up at the sound of birds,but all their songs grow faint; when people are afraid of heights and of dangers in the streets;when the almond tree blossoms and the grasshopper drags itself along and desire no longer is stirred.Then people go to their eternal home and mourners go about the streets. 

Beyond The End   A daily devotion for September 12th   From your friends at RayStedman.org     Read: 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:5       Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands (2 Corinthians 5:1).       What marvelous words! It is obvious that here is a description of the present body of flesh and bones we live in contrasted with the same body, risen and glorified by the activity of the Spirit of God. When you compare these words with those in 1 Corinthians 15, you can see that Paul is talking here about the resurrected body, that body we shall receive in which he says mortality will be swallowed up in immortality. He uses the same terminology here. It is the body, he says, that we shall enter in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, we will be changed and this new body will be given to us (1 Corinthians 15:52). Here he is contrasting the two. The present body, he says, is like a tent. We are living a temporary experience, as people do when they live in a tent. I sometimes feel uncomfortable in this tent of my earthly body. I am sure you do, too. A tent is not very satisfying. The stakes begin to loosen, the poles begin to sag, the tent itself sags in various spots, the cold penetrates, and it is not very comfortable. Some of us feel that way as we grow older. But we are looking forward to the resurrection body, the permanent building, that which God had in mind when He made us in the beginning, the permanent dwelling place designed by God without any human help, a house not made with hands. Nothing human produces it or adds to it; nothing that the undertaker does while our body is being prepared for the grave adds a single thing to what God will do that will produce the body of glory that is to come. The point Paul makes is that it is already ours in eternity. We have, he says. Notice the present tense: not We will have. We have an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands already there, waiting for us to put on. The apostle says that this new body, the resurrected body, is an experience of not being disembodied but being further embodied. He changes the idiom from the building to the body and says it is like being further clothed, so that it is more than we have at the moment. If you feel like you are clothed by being in a body, then in that body you will feel even more clothed, further clothed. No one wants to float around in a bodiless existence. Paul says your actual experience will be this: You will be further clothed upon death as believers. You will have a new body. That is a weight of glory beyond all description, and it will come instantly, for the one who has prepared us for this very thing is God. I thank You, Lord, that when that moment of glory breaks upon my startled heart, I shall at last see Him whom I have long loved and served.       Life Application   Have we forgotten the expectation and hope of our glorious future, for body, soul and spirit?   Related Message   For more on this portion of Scripture read the message: Beyond the End or listen to the audio by clicking:   Listen to Ray     Previous Devotions for September Next       Want to Subscribe?   Subscribe / Unsubscribe to this Daily Devotion by Email   Copyright © 2014 Ray Stedman Ministries — This daily devotion is from the book The Power of His Presence: a year of devotions from the writings of Ray Stedman, compiled by Mark Mitchell. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice and a hyperlink to RayStedman.org if the copy is posted on the Internet.